Chapter 108: The Correct Way to Kiss a Cheek

"What did you say—"

At Drunken Lu Bay, Yiling Ke stared blankly, repeating the words.

The disciple who had come to deliver the message looked at her with concern: "...Vane is a person of the Demon Realm. Not only that, he bears a Demonic Seed and was kidnapped from the Black Suspending Sea by demonic cultivators. Zora, in order to seek revenge for him, killed the elders of the December Sect..."

Ha. Haha. She had only been in seclusion for a few days, and when she came out, the heavens had changed.

The Demon Realm? Vane? How could...

Yiling Ke fell into thought, remembering how that youth acted in front of others.

—It was actually quite possible.

But he hadn't done anything evil.

Yiling Ke's feelings were complex: "Is Zora also a person of the Demon Realm?"

The disciple froze and countered: "Of course not. Zora is a person of the cultivation world through and through."

"Then why would she kill elders and go to the Demon Realm? If she isn't going back to her 'hometown,' what is she going to do?" Yiling Ke pondered.

Disciple: "Eh, well, Senior Sister Yiling... isn't it because—"

Wasn't it because she went to the Demon Realm to find Vane?

Yiling Ke turned a deaf ear, still wondering if Zora had some entanglement with the Demon Realm. Impossible, unless there were enemies of hers in the Demon Realm.

Yiling Ke never even considered the possibility mentioned in the rumors—that Zora's mind had snapped and she had run off to the Demon Realm like some deeply devoted lover, abandoning everything in the cultivation world.

She never even entertained that possibility.

Even if Zora had feelings for Vane, she ought to have just asked him plainly if he was going to die and been done with it. Vane wasn't dead.

It was even less likely she'd run to the Demon Realm

because

of Vane. She was the master; since when does a master follow a servant?

So, she must have business in the Demon Realm. Given Zora's character, she was likely there to kill someone.

...Mhm, it felt like except for killing someone, nothing else could attract or threaten her.

Yiling Ke sighed: "I'll go find Senior Sister Turi first..."

How strange; aside from the initial surprise when she first heard the news, she was now as calm as could be, her heart as still as water.

...It was quite normal, wasn't it? This was Zora, after all.

She would surely live quite well.

"How many people in the Demon Realm are above the Nascent Soul stage?" Yiling Ke paused her steps and suddenly asked.

The disciple thought for a moment and shook his head: "As far as I know, none. In recent years, for some unknown reason, the demonic Qi in the Demon Realm has become increasingly thin. The cultivation speed of demonic cultivators throughout the realm has slowed down more and more, unable to keep up with the cultivation world at all."

"The number of demonic cultivators is small, and few people with exceptional talent appear. That's why the Sect Leaders were so relaxed; no one felt the need to remind others to remain vigilant against the Demon Realm."

...No wonder.

Yiling Ke thought to herself.

No wonder the cultivation world was currently in such a heated outcry against Vane.

He was a person born and raised in the Demon Realm.

Yet he was a genius of cultivation—a genius who trampled thousands upon thousands of cultivators beneath his feet.

Zora accepted the food, and only then did the three people breathe a sigh of relief. This didn't mean they would be free from worries in the future—they still had self-awareness.

This family was merely paying for last night's protection.

"Do you know what this pattern is?" Zora lifted the headless corpse, shoving the pattern in front of the three of them.

When Zora had dropped the corpse last night, it had been face down. Currently, livor mortis only appeared on the face and chest; the pattern on the back was still clearly visible.

the sallow, thin woman first leaned in to look. They had no fear of corpses; moreover, this corpse could be considered an item waiting for a price.

"It's... it's the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion." The woman spoke in an unpalatable, raspy voice. She seemed to know her voice tortured the ears, for she quickly shut her mouth.

Zora: "Immortal-Slaying Pavilion? Where is it?"

This time the man spoke: "At the edge of the Northern Realm Lord's territory. I've heard that if you defeat five hundred opponents on the Beast Stage, you can become a member of the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion."

He thought Zora intended to join them, so his explanation was very eager and detailed.

The Immortal-Slaying Pavilion was likely the organization that had kidnapped Vane this time, though it was unclear whether the order came from the organization's leader, was merely a branch, or was this individual's private action.

Zora thought for a bit but couldn't think of anything.

In that case, she would just wipe them all out. Capturing the king before the pawns was never wrong; catch them and kill them first to prevent those people from constantly swarming over like flies because of the Demonic Seed.

They probably wouldn't believe that the Demonic Seed they pursued had already been dug out and turned into an ordinary little bead.

Zora dropped the corpse and was about to walk back into the cave when she felt her storage bag; an extra piece of paper had been stuffed inside at some point.

"?"

It had probably been brought in unknowingly when she was packing the food from the Falling Rock Forest.

She unfolded it to see Zhou Shijin's handwriting, just a few simple words.

"I forgot I have no corpse and don't need burial. You don't need to cry for three days and nights either; it'll be too noisy."

Zora: "..."

She also forgot whether she had cried during that entire day in the Falling Rock Forest; she probably hadn't.

But mourning requires crying before a coffin or a grave. Without a coffin or grave, there was naturally no need to cry.

Zora blinked and tucked the paper away. The food in her storage bag had long been eaten clean on the way to the Demon Realm.

She walked back into the cave.

"..."

The three people looked at each other, suddenly unable to gauge Zora's intent and not daring to speak without permission. They could only watch her silhouette vanish into the cave entrance.

...

As soon as Zora entered, she saw Vane leaning against the stone wall, his gaze shifting over. The sunlight filtering into the dim cave lightly enveloped him; his skin was pale, his lip color faint, and even his dark, bottomless eyes held a momentary light, like colored glass.

He appeared both fragile and beautiful.

Vane spoke first: "...Don't trust them."

Zora: "Who?"

Vane felt pain in his heart, yet he seemed unaware of it, saying softly: "The three people outside the cave. If they learn of our movements, they will betray us."

His tone was flat, with no hint of hesitation or guesswork, as if the three of them selling information was an absolute certainty.

This was the Demon Realm, especially this lawless land between the Southern and Northern Realms. It was chaotic; various powers constantly rose and fell. Today you might reach the top of an organization; tomorrow your head might be misplaced and the organization wiped out.

When Vane was young, he basically had to memorize the names and distributions of the surrounding powers every once in a while because they were constantly changing. He had to be cautious.

Chaos and constant betrayal were extremely common.

Since his identity as a person of the Demon Realm had already been exposed, he might as well explain it in detail.

"Decades ago, the Demon Realm was divided into the Southern and Northern Realms, each governed by a Demon Lord, and the lawless land between the two. The lawless land is very small and barren, with nothing useful..."

He said a few words, and Zora sat down beside him. Vane looked down at the crown of her head, paused, and then sat down too.

The movement tugged at his muscles, and his lip color turned a shade paler.

Zora didn't mind. She sat with her knees hugged, staring blankly at the stone wall opposite her.

"Then do you know the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion?"

Vane was taken aback, then said: "I do."

Because the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion was one of the few organizations among those large and small that had existed for a long time—rising and falling, but always existing in its gasping state.

Zora: "Where is it?"

"...Apologies, I don't know. Their territory is always changing," Vane paused. "But only the Beast Stage they opened should still be there. Decades ago, I heard that only those who pass the Beast Stage trial can enter the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion. Now... I don't know if it's still like that."

He had not returned to the Demon Realm for a long time; his intelligence was naturally outdated.

Zora gave an "oh." After a moment of silence, she said inexplicably: "Master is dead."

Vane said nothing: "..."

Zora sighed with regret: "No corpse."

Vane: "Perhaps you can use her belongings to make a cenotaph."

"Ah..." Zora opened her mouth, having not considered this at all. She didn't understand such things, but Zhou Shijin had left nothing behind... that wasn't right, hadn't she left a letter?

She couldn't return to the cultivation world, but the Demon Realm ought to have places with good scenery too—even if it wasn't the beauty of green mountains and clear water.

Zora said naturally: "Then find a beautiful place in the Demon Realm and make a cenotaph."

The Demon Realm...?

Vane turned his head to look at her. Zora's expression held no trace of reluctance; she simply felt there was no obvious boundary between the cultivation world and the Demon Realm.

She didn't think the Demon Realm was dirty, so she wouldn't think he was dirty either.

Zora didn't know that the person beside her could spin a single sentence into a thousand thoughts; she was still there thinking about the scenery of the Demon Realm.

She didn't think Zhou Shijin would mind such things, as Zhou Shijin didn't regard the cultivation world as some indispensable home.

Zora couldn't help but urge him: "Get well quickly. We'll find the Beast Stage first, then find the people from the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion and kill them."

She had never been to the Demon Realm, so why was there a grudge with the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion?

Vane didn't ask, only saying: "Alright."

...

The two were inside the cave while the three were outside. The sun tilted; Zora cultivated for a while, then read a storybook out of boredom.

Vane glanced at her, sitting quietly to regulate his meridians and spiritual power.

As the sun set in the west, Zora thought of the Demonic Seed and asked: "Where's that bead?"

Vane opened his eyes and handed the Demonic Seed to her.

Zora held the translucent purple bead; placed under the few rays of sunset, it reflected light. She squeezed hard but couldn't crush it.

There really wasn't a trace of demonic Qi fluctuation left, yet it was very sturdy.

Zora asked the System.

System:

[It's quite normal. Otherwise, anyone could use a Demonic Seed, and it wouldn't be unique enough. This is a bound item.]

Zora: "..."

The System suddenly sighed with melancholy:

[I didn't expect the Host to have already completed half the mission. But the second mission—as long as the Host cultivates well, isn't that as easy as pie!]

It boasted loudly, a string of flattery popping out as if it could see the dawn of victory.

[Once the mission is done, even if the Host returns to her original world, won't she just kill everyone! That arena will be nothing more than the Host's toy.]

It was clearly getting carried away.

[Oops, the Host might even become the peak of her original low-magic world—]

The System suddenly fell silent.

—Wait, wouldn't that be terrible!? The Host isn't someone with a strong sense of good and evil. If she can't manage her power well and pokes a hole straight through the low-magic world, what then!?

[...Um,]

the System cleared its throat,

[be careful. You have to handle ordinary people gently.]

But its Host didn't reply for a long time.

[Host?]

Zora said honestly: "I don't know which world to go to after the mission. Yiling Ke and the others are in this world, but the enemy is in the other world."

She was talking about the man who killed her in her original world. Zora was accustomed to revenge; in her view, if she and her friends had to part forever because of the need for revenge, she would find it perfectly reasonable.

The System froze and said hesitantly:

[Actually, here isn't bad either... it's just really dangerous. You only had an intersection with the villain because of the mission; it probably won't be easy to shake him off later...]

Unknowingly taking Zora's perspective, it developed a "bad girl" mindset:

[I remember a Host who chose to stay in the mission world. In the end, she couldn't shake off the conquest target and was imprisoned.]

"Ah," Zora shook her head, "so weak."

[Uh... true. But that was an ordinary ancient world! No cultivation or magic. The conquest target had high status and power. Sigh... in the end, that Host died of grief.]

The System sighed for a while. And that Host had given up a peaceful modern world—the kind with parents and ordinary happiness. What a waste.

Unlike its current Host; the place she lived in her original world was like an uncivilized, barbaric age, with no family or friends. It couldn't compare to this cultivation world where one could fly and tunnel through the earth.

It looked at Zora, who had placed the bead on the ground and was attempting to crush it, then looked at the villain leaning against the stone wall with his eyes closed. He appeared to be fully focused on healing, but in reality, he was constantly watching Zora.

Cracks had already appeared in the ground, but the bead was still intact. Until the bead was released and rolled away—whether it was the attraction of its former owner or some other reason, it rolled to Vane's boot.

Before the bead even touched him, the youth who should have been eyes-closed and unaware opened his eyes and picked it up.

Since the villain was acting, the System automatically went silent to avoid affecting the Host—though it had spoken while the villain and Host were talking before, the villain hadn't noticed... because its Host was always in a daze, expressionless and steady, without a shred of guilt or sneakiness.

Zora looked over. Vane looked down at the purple bead: "It seems the Demonic Seed cannot be destroyed."

Zora: "But right now it's just an ordinary bead."

Vane: "Correct."

Zora thought of something and asked: "Can it go back inside you?"

Dig open the flesh and stuff it back in.

Vane paused, then shook his head slightly: "I don't know."

Zora: "Oh."

She was just asking. She walked to his side, sat down, and took out her storybook to continue reading. It was a book she had read several times, but it was long enough to withstand a re-read.

"..." Vane looked down at the purple bead in his hand—deep, ghostly purple, round and cold. From the outside, it looked like an item of immense value.

"I..." he suddenly spoke.

Zora turned her head.

Vane pursed his lips, his eyes lowered, appearing as if he didn't dare meet her gaze. Holding the purple bead, the purple made his knuckles look even whiter. He had good features, and his hands were good too—long, moist, and white, with slightly protruding knuckles. His veins weren't prominent, hidden and flat beneath the skin, with only a hint of blue showing on the back of his hand. It was exceptionally attractive.

"...I haven't said it yet," Vane lifted his eyes, "but I'm very happy that you picked me up again."

She hadn't abandoned him. It was he who had exposed himself, slipping and falling from her hands like a cloth doll, stained with the dirt of the ground.

Zora hadn't found it troublesome, picking him up again and even dusting him off. Of course, she also hadn't noticed that this habitually smiling doll had a piteous drop of tear hanging from its button eyes.

Zora blinked.

She vaguely noticed Vane seemed to have changed a bit, but didn't mind, giving an "mhm": "You're welcome."

He smiled: "...What do you need to do in the Demon Realm? Or rather, what can I do?"

"Kill the people from the Immortal-Slaying Pavilion first, then kill anyone who wants to look for trouble."

"I understand."

The System felt its teeth ache for a moment and vanished. If it knew what the Host was thinking, it would surely shout:

[He's not pretending anymore! Host, haven't you noticed he's becoming less and less reserved!!]

After a moment of silence, Zora heard him say again: "What about now?"

"What do you mean 'now'?"

"Do you want to kiss me now?"

He was actually able to look at her. With just a twitch of his eyebrows, he could project a faint sense of vulnerability, like a dog wagging its tail for pity, yet not so lowly. After all, things that are too lowly and base will not have lasting attraction.

"Mhm..." Zora shook her head, "no."

Vane paused before speaking the words he had prepared: "...Can I kiss you?"

He knew they were not lovers right now. Zora seemed to have never thought of giving him a title. she did what she wanted to do, with no sense of responsibility to speak of. He was her servant to begin with, and moreover, she didn't have conventional concepts of romance.

He just wanted to take another step, to be a little bit closer to her. That was all.

Zora was taken aback, then gave him a serious look: "Like I did yesterday?"

"Like you did yesterday."

"Mhm... okay." Zora agreed very generously. Looking at his face, then at his pale lips, she actually felt a bit of curiosity. Just as she was curious about the feeling of kissing, perhaps being kissed was another kind of experience.

Vane's lashes trembled. Before he could even move closer, Zora very honestly leaned her face over, sideways, as if giving him a cue.

The girl's slightly fleshy left cheek approached. Vane instinctively wanted to pull back, but forcibly controlled himself.

"Kiss." Zora was even afraid he'd kiss the wrong spot, using her finger to tap her left cheek, creating a tiny, soft indentation before letting it return. That was the spot where she had kissed Vane's cheek last night; it was about the same.

"..."

Vane lowered his eyes, his heart drumming like a stampede. Yet his face remained very calm, his eyes moving slightly. He lowered his head and left a mark on her face.

A gentle touch, like a feather.

But Zora didn't think so.

Her face was a bit cool, while Vane was warm.

Unlike Zora's firm kiss, his lips had barely touched her skin, almost leaving but not quite. It was itchy.

Though Vane's heart was in turmoil, his expression was truly steady. Only his lashes fluttered incessantly. He looked at the ground, at her hem, then lifted his eyes slightly to peek at her.

It was too itchy. Zora scratched the spot. A rabbit seemed to be jumping in her heart—happy yet strange. But she didn't lose her head; ignoring her own mood, she frowned first and said with dissatisfaction: "Doing it like that makes it very itchy."

"..." Vane, "apologies."

Zora looked at him. Seizing her good mood, like a woodpecker, she suddenly tilted her head and gave him a firm, solid kiss. The flesh of the youth's cheek indented slightly. With the force she used, his head was also pushed back a little.

Zora straightened up: "It has to be like this."

Clearly, she just wanted to kiss him, but used it as a demonstration.

"..."

He didn't speak, his eyelids moving slightly as he gave her a look.

The two looked at each other, very close, as if even their breath was entwined.

She stared with eyes that were slightly round, then scratched her face again.

He should have said "I understand" before continuing, but Vane was uncharacteristically silent.

He watched her in silence, then lowered his head in silence to kiss her again.

This time Zora didn't need to tilt her head to approach. The youth leaned his upper body forward; he was the one actively closing all the distance. Warmth invaded; Zora felt her face be kissed.

Unlike the one she had demonstrated, this kiss was stickier, longer, as if reluctant to leave.

It wasn't itchy.

Zora was stunned for a moment: "Ah..."

Because her head also tilted a bit—from the kiss.